Means for grouting masonry



v J. F. o

MEANS FOR GROUTING MASONRY ROURKE Filed Aug. 28 1919 Patented Mar. 18, 1924.

UNITED S'IMns` JGHN lIl?. OROURKE, F NEW YORK, N. Y.

MEANS non eno-Urine MAsonnY.

Application lediAugu'st 2S, 191,9.l Serial No. 320,345.

blocks and in thev pointing of the joints,

through which holes the grout was poured or forced into the joints. This involved many difficulties and much time and cost, and has often resulted in choking the joints with spawls and dirt'so that the completeness of the grouting was a matter of doubt.

The object of this invention is to provide a ready and effective means for grouting joints in masonry` comprising concrete blocks, terra cotta and other molded building material. I accomplish such object by forming passages in someV of the blocks opening therethrough between the faces of the blocks and the joints between the blocks. Said passage maybe fitted with a screw thread rnoldl ed into the material of the bloclrfor convenience in attaching a grout pipe. Plugs may also be provided for closing the openings in the faces ofthe blocks.

Where joints between blocks arel not gpen throughout from front to back, as in the case of tongue and groove joints between adjoining courses or rings, connections are provided to the vjoint Qn each side of the tongue or groove or other interruption. rlrhese may be independent passages opening to different parts of the joint or one passage may be connected to both such parts with openings into each so that both parts may be grouted inthe same operation.

The grouting can be done at, once whenever the joints in the face of the masonry are` pointed, caulked or otherwise closed against` the outflow of 'the` grout throughv ysuch joints. When joints are maintained at a minimum width suiiicient to permit grout to How from joint to joint until all are Filled and no more can be forced through the supply pipe, my invcntion as applied to the ygrouting lof concrete block tunnel linings or piers insures a monolithic construction.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming part hereof, wherein- Figl is a face view of a portion Of a tun- .for the blocks into suitable molds.

blocks may be of the class having projections nel lining or arch comprising molded blocks embodying my invention, having lspaced complemental projections and recesses on opposite faces; v

Fig. 2 is a partly broken under side view thereof;

\ Fig. 3 is a detail of a lining or arch wherein the blocks have continuousk intermeshing tongues and grooves;

Fig. 4c is a detail section;y j j Fig. is a detail section illustrating the grout vpassage opening through the face of a block on opposite sides of aninterruption along such face; i Fig. 6 illustrates a portion of a pier or column embodying my invention; y f Fig. 7 is an enlarged detail section of a portion of afmold for blocks, illustrating means for forming the grout passages in molded blocks, and

Fig. 8 Villustrates theblock removed from the mold. j

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several views.

The blocks l may be of concrete, terra cotta or other material for molded building y blocks, which may be made in any well known manner, as by charging thematerial The 2 onone face andrecesses 3 on another face,

therecess of .one blocky receiving the projec- -t-ion of an adjacent'block.

`Said projections may be of such length from the corresponding face of the block compared to the depth of the recesses that when the blocks are laid in ring forni or courses the joints 4 between the v blocks willy be appreciable in extent.

`Such an arrangement of blocks is set forth in U. S. Letters Patent issued to me Nov. 5,

'1912,.No. 1,043,848. j .Or the blocks mayhave grooves 3 continuous along one faceto receive continuous tongues `or projections 2 of adjacent blocks for uniting the blocks in lateral directions. in a well known manner. Any desired number ofthe blocks are provided with pgrout" passages, 7 that open ythrough a convenient face Vof each such block, as at 7, for entranceof grout, and also open through the faces of such blocks at the corresponding joint 4c, as at .7", for the exit of grout into the joints. The grout passages .may open at 7b through the faces of the Ablocks on leither side of the projection,

tongue or recess, .or may open at 7b through the faces of the blocks on opposite sides lll) of such projection, tongue or recess, a single passage 7 having two outlets 7b, such as in Fig. 5. Each block, or any desired number of blocks, in a tunnel lining or other structure may have one or more of the passages 7 opening at 7b through the face that will be at the joint between blocks. For tunnel linings the grout inlet openings usually Will be in the inner faces of the blocks with the outlets 7b in faces angularly disposed thereto. The later construction may be provided for arches and other structures. For solid masonry comprising molded blocks the grout inlet openings 7a may be on the outer faces of the blocks and the outlets 7 b in desired inner faces of such blocks, although the inlets 7 a may be on either face convenient of access and the outlets 7b on either face of a block that opposes another block.

` In Fig. 7 I have illustrated a means for producing the passages in the blocks when they are being molded. A wall 8of the moldis provided with one or more holes 9 adapted to receive a plug or core 10 of desired dimensions, which plugs may have screw threads 11, preferably adjacent to the inner face of the wall8. At 12 is a die orV core within the mold, shown in tapering form inwardly and retaineduponv the mold board or wall 13 by a pin 14 preferably screwed into the mold board, andentering a hole lin the die or core 12 to removablyV retain it in the mold. yThe inner end of die or core 12 is provided with a transverse bore or hole 15 registering with hole 9 and adapted to receive the inner end of plug 10, whereby the latter and the die 12 will be at an angle to each other when in the mold. W'ith the mold parts assembled as shown in Fig. 7 the concrete or other material a will be charged into the mold in any suitable or usual way, and such material will envelop the plug 10 and die or core 12 within the mold to produce the passage 7 with its inlet 7 and outlet 7 b together with the threads 7c at the grout receiving side of the block, as illustrated. After the material a has set or hardened, as desired, the plug l0 can be unscrewed, and by reason of the threads 7c formed in the material a by the threads 11 the removal of said plug from such material is facilitated. WhenV the block is removed from the mold vits passage will be substantially as shown in Fig. 8. The threads 7c in the block afford a simple means for the attachment to the block of a pipe or hose of a grout gun or machine.

After any desired number of the blocks have been set and when the joints between the blocks have been pointed, caulked or otherwise closed the grout pipe'or hose may be connected to the inlet 7a of a passage 7 of any such blocks to enable the grout to be forced into such joints l under pressure save for by vflowing through the material of the block from inlet 7a through outlet 7b, until the space between the blocks is completely filled with the grout. When the grout pipe or hose is removed from the inlet 7a the latter may be closed by a suitable plug screwed or forced therein.

A great advantage of my invention is that the grouting of the joints may be accomplished from faces of the blocks other than the joint faces, whereby access may be readily had to the grout inlets without disturbing the pointing or caulking of the joints, and whereby such pointing or caulking' may be continuous and intact throughout, without requiring holes or spaces in the pointing or caullring, thereby overcoming objections to the old methods 'of grouting j oints' and 'affording a more complete and secure grouting ofthe joints.

By the term building blocks as used herein I mean to include molded blocks of'suitable material adapted for use for linings for tunnels, sewers and' other conduits as well as for arches, piers, Walls and floors, and all other structures or parts thereof where such blocks are useful and the joints are to be grouted.

My invention is particularly applicable to so called dry masonry, or masonry in which the mortar does not completely fill the joints, and having parts of the joints of the masonry sealed with a pointing which may be of mortar or mastic or an asphaltumlike i'naterial, or a caulking of oakum or other material driven into the faces of the joints, and by the word pointing as used herein I mean to include all of such or similar means to close the exterior portions of the joints.

Having now described my invention what I claim is Y Y 1. In a tunnel or conduit lining molded blocks having open joints therebetween,

some of said blocks having passages opening atone end into the tunnel and opening at the other end into the joint between adjacent blocks, and a filling within said joints between the opening of said passages into the joints and the inner surface of the tunnel,

said joints being open along the outer surface of the lining to permit grout to flow from said joints into any spaces surrounding the tunnel. Y

2. A building block having an interrup tion along a face and provided with a pas- D grout khaving outlet openings through said face on opposite sides of the interruption, said passage having an inlet in another face.

Signed at New York city, in the county of New York and State of New York, this 26 day of August A. D. 1919.

JOHN F. OROURKE. 

